COVID-19 booster vaccine now available to people aged 16 to 59 with an underlying condition

People living with chronic heart disease such as heart failure, are being encouraged to attend for their COVID-19 booster vaccine to protect themselves against serious illness if they contract the virus.

The National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) has recommended that a booster dose of an mRNA vaccine now be offered to:

• All those aged 16-59 years who have an underlying condition including chronic heart disease.
• All residents in long-term healthcare facilities, irrespective of age, many if not all of whom will have an underlying condition.
• All those aged 50 to 59 years who have completed their primary course with any COVID-19 vaccine.

Booster doses will also soon be offered to people aged

• 16 years and older who are pregnant
• 50 to 59
• 40 to 49
• 16 to 39 – in stages with older age groups being called first

As per previous booster dose recommendations, the additional dose will be given at least five months following completion of the primary vaccination schedule.

If a person in a group for whom a booster dose is recommended has had COVID-19 after a completed primary vaccine course, the booster dose should be delayed for at least six months after the COVID-19 infection was diagnosed.

Booster doses have already  been recommended for people aged 60 and over and healthcare workers.

For the COVID-19 booster vaccine you will be offered a single dose of either the: Pfizer/BioNTech or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.

You can get one of these vaccines even if you already got a different COVID-19 vaccine.

Before you get your booster you should have already received one of the below COVID-19 vaccine courses:

• 2 doses of Pfizer/BioNTech – ‘Comirnaty’
• 2 doses of AstraZeneca – ‘Vaxzevria’
• 2 doses of Moderna – ‘Spikevax’
• 1 dose of Johnson & Johnson – ‘Janssen’

You do not need to register to get your COVID-19 booster dose, the HSE will contact you when your vaccine is available.

A number of walk in clinics are also available for specific groups of people to get their booster vaccine you can read more information about these clinics here.

If you are in one of the groups currently eligible for a COVID booster you can also get it from a participating pharmacy. You need to contact the pharmacy to book your appointment in advance. You can see a list of pharmacies offering this service here.

As the winter is now upon us it is also recommended that people avail of the flu vaccine which is available free of charge to everyone aged 65 and over and those living with certain conditions such as chronic heart disease and diabetes.

The flu vaccine will help protect those most at risk of serious illness from flu and it is the best way to protect yourself as we head into the winter months

It is safe to get your COVID-19 vaccine at the same time as the flu vaccine or other vaccines you may need.

According to the HSE, while all COVID-19 vaccines licenced in Ireland are effective at protecting people from hospitalisation and severe illness from COVID-19, infections in people who are fully vaccinated can happen, especially in older people.

This may be because when you are older your immune system does not respond as strongly to vaccination, so protection from vaccination may weaken over time.

Infections may also be more likely because of society opening up and the spread of the more infectious Delta variant of COVID-19.

A COVID-19 vaccine booster dose has been recommended by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) in Ireland and approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The COVID-19 vaccines that have been approved for use in Ireland are safe and effective.

There have not been any concerns about serious side effects in people who have received a booster dose so far.

Coupled with getting your COVID-19 booster, it is also important to remember to continue to wear face coverings, wash your hands regularly, and to maintain social distancing.

For more information on COVID-19 vaccines please see here.